In almost every sense of the word, Cape Breton’s Aaron MacDonald has survived the storm. Having spent years crisscrossing Canada with a five-piece band, he’s seen it all and lived to tell, or more accurately, sing about it.
Aaron MacDonald has been the life of the party. He’s been the face on the poster, and the leader of the band. He’s traveled and he’s lived a life that many would, and have, died for, and he’s made his share of mistakes along the way, but it’s this big bag of life lessons that gives such credibility to his latest record, It’s Been Too Long.
These days he meets you with a confident smile; a smile that only a guy with his life experience could offer. At first listen, it becomes obvious that MacDonald is comfortable in his own skin. He’s steering the ship now; from writing, recording and engineering, marketing and promotion, to performing his own material, MacDonald is knee-deep in all of it.
Admittedly, it can be a daunting task, but he is enjoying the journey.
Let’s be clear; there are no curveballs here. The most refreshing thing about this record is that it couldn’t tell a lie if it wanted to. It’s as honest as the man himself, and on first listen you are brought into MacDonald’s life as he is living it today. It is a life full of simple joys, and well-earned confidence, and MacDonald, smiling under his customary fedora hat and thick beard, has swung the door wide open for you.
His opening volley, the toe-tapping “Gonna Get There,” gives us a glimpse of a guy who acknowledges his human frailty all while offering up the hope that he’s “gonna get there” with the help of those closest to him. From stem to stern the record is an unflagging commentary of hope and positivity, and this track is just the beginning. We get a taste of his ability to find a groove straight away, and it falls in line with his philosophy that music should be fun.
“I try to make even my sad songs sound happy,” says MacDonald, who has already sold us on the idea as we move on to the next track.
“Exactly” finds MacDonald comfortable at home. He doesn’t know what the future holds any more than you or I, but he’s prepared for whatever it is because, as he says, “This town raised me right, and I’m exactly where I want to be.” That’s a dangerous level of contentment and one that has taken years for him to realize.
“I covered things up for so long with traveling, drinking, and singing, that I never realized what I was missing ultimately was home,” reflects MacDonald.
The next song, “Wait,” was written for his wife and almost didn’t make the record. It was only at the urging of his cousin and regular collaborator, Brennan MacDonald that it even saw the light of day.
“I send so much material to Brennan that sometimes something slips through the cracks,” laughs MacDonald. “The record was almost ready to go out the door when Brennan fought for this song to be included.”
The song itself speaks to an ideal that he and his wife have been living by lately. “No more waiting. Life is too short,” says MacDonald, while acknowledging that if you keep waiting for the right time for this or that, ten years will go by without you even noticing.
One thing he never put on hold was his songwriting. MacDonald wrote poetry before he could even play, and so the progression to being a songwriter was a natural one.
“There’s no drug like finishing a song,” beams MacDonald, who is affectionately known as “Spock” by his close friends. “I need to get these thoughts off my chest, and have never had a problem getting my ideas down.”
Perhaps the challenge these days is to flesh out these ideas before he needs to hit up the next hockey practice or soccer game.
“My wife and I are both very involved with our kids’ activities,” he shares. These days his van would most likely be filled with gear bags and soccer cleats rather than broken strings and empty bottles, and MacDonald couldn’t be happier
If there’s even a hint of complaining; so much as a shadow of bellyaching, it comes in the next song, “I Do Better in the Sun.” Here we find MacDonald longing for the warm days; the extra hours of light, and the darkness of his wife’s tanned skin. You can’t really blame him. Cape Breton, much like the rest of the country, is a cold and desolate place in the winter, but year after year, right on cue, comes bursting to life in the summer as people flock to its beaches, and spend their hard-earned vacation time exploring its hills and valleys. It truly is one of the most beautiful places on earth. Perhaps the only saving grace on this track is the tasty and blistering electric guitar work of Greg Favoro who, along with his wife helped MacDonald fill up space on the record.
The final track, “I Still Need You,” is another example of what the Favaros bring to the table. The final cut shows us that way back when MacDonald was urged by his friends to toss out his country record collection, he may have held on to a few of them. A lifelong fan of the work of John Prine, MacDonald definitely stole a page from his book when putting this number together. He even describes it as his own version of “In Spite of Ourselves,” the classic duet that Prine penned and sang with Iris Dement.
Written as a sort of apology to his wife for one of what he might call his “many slip-ups,” the track is touching, and hits the mark as a sweet love song; one made sweeter by the vocal work of Jess Favaro. It’s got a bouncy finger-picked gait, and delivers MacDonald’s assurance to his wife that she’s certainly his better half, and that he ‘still needs her.’ Greg Favaro’s deft acoustic lead is the cherry on top of this song, which has all the markings of a classic sing-along. The joy of working with such great musicians is evident as the tape keeps rolling, and the last thing we get to hear is Jess’ laughter.
It’s Been Too Long is an open and honest account of a man that sings for his friends, his family, his kids, and his fans, but, most importantly, for himself. It’s an easy record to listen to, and it’s one that will make you smile on a bad day. We all agree, Aaron. It has been too long.